Move to shift public health $ to pay for deputies fails

King County Councilman Reagan Dunn sought Monday to take money from public health funding to restore 26 sheriff’s deputies to next year’s budget, saying budgets cuts would make rural King County “the least policed area in our state.”

Some of his colleagues slammed the proposal, saying his information was incorrect and that the amount of police protection in unincorporated King Co. was much higher than was was offered to Pierce and Snohomish county residents.

Dunn

Dunn wanted to shift $3.2 million from public health spending to pay for the deputies, who will be laid off to help deal with a $60 million 2011 deficit. His amendment failed by a partisan five to four vote, with Democrats voting ‘no’ and Dunn and his fellow Republicans voting ‘yes.’

Dunn’s amendment was one of several he offered Monday night during the final budget sevent to two vote in which Councilmembers approved next year’s $621 million operating budget. Dunn and Councilman Pete von Reichbauer voted ‘no.’

Dunn’s unsuccessful amendments were the latest salvos fired in an ongoing battle about how to pay for public safety in King County. Voters earlier this month rejected a 0.2 percent sales tax increase designed to preserve positions in the sheriff and prosecutor’s office. Republicans on the Council opposed that measure, which was supported by Sheriff Sue Rahr and Prosecutor Dan Satterberg.

Twenty-eight sheriff’s deputies and 16 prosecuting attorneys will be laid off to help King County deal with a $60 million operating budget deficit next year. Probation services will also be reduced in the Superior and District courts. A total of 300 positions will be eliminated county wide. Despite the law enforcement cuts, public safety makes up 76 percent of the general fund budget. There is no money included for human services to help the poor and needy.

Several Councilmembers sharply criticized the union representing sheriff’s deputies, noting that unlike almost all other county employees deputy’s have refused to give up raises for next year. The deputies are scheduled to get a 5 percent bump in 2011 next year, part of a 27 percent raise over five years.

“If the police officer’s guild would give a concession in terms of their wage adjustment next year, every one of these positions could be preserved,” Councilmember Larry Phillips said.

Taking money from public health didn’t make any sense, said Phillips, noting that funds for infectious diseases and other vital areas would be cut under Dunn’s proposal. “Bugs or bullets, each will kill you with equal finality,” Phillips said. He also said it would be unfair to the bargaining units that gave up raises next year for the county to take money from their departments to pay for deputies pay raises.

“Our employee sin the public health department gave up their cost-of-living adjustments in order to ensure those public health services were still available in King County,” Phillip said. “I don’t think another employee in King County would ever trust us again if we adopted this amendment.”

Dunn cited numbers from the sheriff’s office that said with the cuts, there will only be 0.65 officers per 1,000 residents for the residents of unincorporated King County, compared to a county average of 1.5 per 1,0000. “This emaciated level of service places more than 300,000 people in danger.”

But Councilwoman Julia Patterson said Dunn’s numbers were bogus. She asked a Council staff member for an analysis. The staff member said the number of sworn officers for rural King County will be 1.37 per 1,000 residents – and that even with the layoffs the number is going up slightly. That’s because cities like Kirkland are annexing rural parts of the county, providing city police service for those people. The coverage for King County is significantly better than Pierce (0.76 deputies per 1,000) and Snohomish (0.83 per 1,000( counties, according to a staff report.

Dunn was told the sheriff’s department wasn’t taking into consideration the annexations.

But Sgt. John Urquhart, spokesman for Rahr, said the staffer’s “analysis is wrong. We look forward to showing him the correct numbers. Hopefully the citizens of unincorporated King County won’t be fooled.”